Cleaning Up Gas Stations and Other Petroleum Sites

In 2004, North Country Council (NCC) in Bethlehem, New Hampshire received a $200,000 EPAAssessment grant for sites contaminated by petroleum. With the funding, the Council has conducted five Phase I and five Phase II assessments of brownfields sites. Two sites are being redeveloped immediately; plans have not yet been made for the remaining sites.

One site was previously an illegal car repair operation at a residence, and the City of Berlin was assuming ownership to cover unpaid taxes. The site contained engines and containers of waste oil in the cellar, garage, driveway and yard. Cleanup entailed removing 11 tons of soil contaminated by motor and fuel oil. NCC assisted city officials by collecting and analyzing samples and advising them on environmental issues prior to the tax sale.

Brownfields redevelopment is important to the 51 towns and villages in the North Country because the region has lost large numbers of manufacturing jobs since the 1970s and 1980s, particularly in the paper and pulp mill industries. The region also has a higher poverty rate than the rest of the state, so jobs created by redevelopment projects will benefit residents.

NCC Assistant Director Jeff Hayes says, “Brownfields assessments gauge the viability of reuse for properties like old industrial mill structures. There are a lot of them in downtown areas. These brownfields sites affect the business environment of the towns and create redevelopment issues.” To further its brownfields program, NCC is seeking additional funding for sites contaminated by both petroleum and other substances.